See the downtown Chicago musical EXCLUSIVELY at Hollywood Casino Joliet - Saturdays at Hollywood Stadium Sports Bar!Dine like a star at Final Cut Steakhouse and the crowd-pleasing Epic Buffet. Or grab a quick bite at the Take Two Deli right on the casino floor. Whatever you’re in the mood for, Hollywood Casino Joliet has delicious dining that always plays to rave reviews.Argosy's Empress Casino( also known as Empress Casino Joliet) was a Riverboat casino and hotel located in Joliet, Illinois. Built in the 1990s by a group of investors headed by T.J. Lambrecht, Empress Casino become one of the first riverboat casinos in Illinois. It was destroyed by a fire on March 20, 2009.In the early 1990s construction company owner T.J. Lambrecht believed that a riverboat casino in Joliet could thrive, a risky idea at the time. Using a portion of his own money, he and a group of investors created Empress Casino. The Empress Casino opened on June 16, 1992 as a riverboat type casino in Joliet, Illinois.

The casino made extensive use of the Egyptian theme including several pyramids on top of the entertainment complex, a large recreation of the Sphinx and faux hieroglyphics along the sides of the building. The unique Egyptian theme became the casinos hallmark. In 1996 its sister casino was opened in Hammond, Indiana as Empress Casino Hammond. Empress sold both casino properties to Horseshoe Gaming Holding Corporation in 1999. Horseshoe sold the Empress Casino Joliet to the Argosy Gaming Company in 2001 for $465 million. The company re-branded it as Argosy's Empress Casino. Penn National Gaming acquired the Argosy Gaming Company in 2005 and took over all of its operations including the Empress Casino. While undergoing a renovation in 2009 the casino was destroyed by a fire. Penn National Gaming rebuilt the casino under its Hollywood Casino brand as Hollywood Casino Joliet, the Egyptian theme was mostly removed and replaced with 1920's-1930's art deco.Club Chameleon- A bar and nightclub

Club Chameleon Gift Shop- A small shop selling casino merchandiseMarrakech Market Buffet- A large buffetZanzibar- A bar and area available for private parties and banquetsCafe Casablanca- An Arab style coffeehouseThe interiors were designed by the Varond Design Group, Inc.The Empress had a detached 102 room hotel. The hotel included a pool and whirlpool area along with a business/conference center. Empress was the only casino in northern Illinois to have an onsite RV park. The park was opened seasonally and provided many amenities including showers, and water/electrical hook ups. A complimentary shuttle bus ran between the hotel and the casino.While undergoing a $50 Million renovation, a fire broke out at around 10 a.m. on March 20, 2009. The fire was caused by a spark from a welder's torch which ignited grease in one of the kitchens. The subsequent fire spread rapidly. The casino was evacuated and fire crews attempted to contain the fire for several hours. The fire burned above the sprinkler systems reach in what are known as void spaces, inside walls and above hung ceilings.

Inside the void spaces the fire was able to spread quickly and decimate the entire entertainment complex. It took a significant portion of the cities fire department several hours to bring the blaze under control. The fire resulted in no fatalities however two guest were transported to a nearby hospital with non-life threatening injuries. While the gaming complex itself was untouched by the fire the entire entertainment area was a total loss. The roof collapsed on the kitchen and ballroom area taking with it one of the large pyramid structures that sat atop the roof.The fire and the casinos subsequent closing was potentially catastrophic for the local economy. The Empress employed over 800 people and was Joliet's second largest tax payer. The month before the fire the casino paid a reported $837,000 in taxes to the city along with $1.8 million to the state of Illinois. In a press conference after the fire the Empress Casino said it was losing $500,000 in revenue every day it remained closed.

Nearby business also reported a dip in revenue. During the same press conference the general manager said 'We will be paying our employees for up to 90 days with full pay and full benefits and for the tip folks, we're going to be paying them 50 percent of any of their reported tip income.'After being closed for 97 days the casino was able to reopen the gaming area which was renovated after the fire. The Empress Casino reopened on June 25, 2009 as the Hollywood Casino Joliet. The new casino, still owned by Penn National Gaming, abandoned the Egyptian theme for an art-deco Hollywood styling. In honor of the new casino 'Empress Drive' was renamed 'Hollywood Blvd.' and the address changed to: 777 Hollywood Blvd. Joliet, IL 60436. The hotel and RV park still remain open but with diminished amenities. The hotel closed its pool and business/conference center. Unlike the casino the hotel did not undergo any significant renovations and still retains the Egyptian exterior styling.

The roof of the shower area at the entrance to the RV park still retains its pyramid top.In 2008 the Empress Casino was one of four plaintiffs in the Supreme Court of Illinois case Empress Casino v. Giannoulias. The suit challenged an imposed tax on the grounds that it was unconstitutional.On October 23, 2012 lawyers representing the former Empress Casino filed a lawsuit against the six companies involved in the renovations at the time of the fire. The lawsuit claimed $83.5 million in damages resulting from 11 counts of negligence and willful and wanton conduct. The suit claims that the company did not provide a fire extinguisher near the welder as he worked and that the cleaning company employed failed to remove all the grease residue properly. The suit cites the architect, engineer, and supplier for failure to include sprinkler systems in the attic and truss spaces.In 1996 a four-level gaming vessel, Empress Casino was opened in Hammond,Indiana. It was sold along with its sister property in Joliet,Il to the Horseshoe Gaming Holding Corporation in 1999.

See the downtown Chicago musical EXCLUSIVELY at Hollywood Casino Joliet - Saturdays at Hollywood Stadium Sports Bar!Dine like a star at Final Cut Steakhouse and the crowd-pleasing Epic Buffet. Or grab a quick bite at the Take Two Deli right on the casino floor. Whatever you’re in the mood for, Hollywood Casino Joliet has delicious dining that always plays to rave reviews.Voted the Las Vegas Buffet Wars winner in 2013, Flavors the Buffet brings a fun and lively dining experience to Harrah’s Joliet.We have the jackpots that can change your life! If you're looking for winning slot action, play at Harrah's! Harrah's Joliet has more than 1,100 of the hottest slots in town, including reels, video reels, progressive machines and video poker. Our huge variety of progressive slot machines in different denominations make the excitement even bigger!'Stayed for four nights. The place hasn't been fully renovated but for the price who cares! Its literally minutes from a…'

This place is much more nicer now that the renovations are done. We've been here a few times. Once overnight - rooms are clean and staff is friendly. It's a nice place to go to for a couple hours close to home!One thing - machines are tight.The hotel was average at best. I thought it was newer, but certain things seemed dated. Had a junior suite for one night. Didn't make any use of the in room jacuzzi, but it was large and inviting. Mirrored walls, 'wink wink.' There was dirt on the floor in the hallways, but the room overall was clean and the bed was comfortable. Got a great rate, so no major complaints.Casino on the other hand was not at all exciting. Small, only four roulette tables and a handful of $15 blackjack tables. Found one $10 table and the dealer beat the pants off the table. Lost three 20s to three or four draw 21s. I've had better luck online.I do not like to gamble since I never win anything. My friend on the other hand likes to gamble since she usually wins.

She decided to take me to this casino to teach me how to place blackjack. We went on President's Day around noon. They have an awesome looking sports bar and 2 floors for gambling. I played a couple of slots machine, blackjack, and roulette. Well I lost $100 and my friend that has good luck lost $120.I did grab a bite to eat at the sports bar. I had the pulled pork sliders with some soup they had. The soup wasn't all that, but the sliders were pretty good. They also carry this stuff called Joose. It's like a wine cooler just alot stronger. They have different specials during the week at the bar.Since I don't go to casino's I can't really compare Hollywood Casino to anything else.The Empress Casino is one of two Joliet casinos. The other is Harrah's located in downtown Joliet. Empress is off of Interstate 80 near Interstate 55. It's best to go to the casino's website to get directions.Empress is one of the nicer Chicago area casinos I've been to.

In general, the casinos in Chicago are geared towards slot play, and less toward table games. Slots account for the majority of profits that casinos make, due to the odds being so heavily in the casinos favor. Empress offers a good variety of table games for a smaller casino. Roulette and craps are offered, as are blackjack, Caribbean stud, three-card poker, and possibly one or two other games. The minimum bets for these games is probably going to be between $15 and $25. I've never seen a $5 table in the Chicago area, so you'll have to go up to Ho-Chunk in the Wisconsin Dells for that.I'd say that Empress is on the less-smoky side as far as the Chicago casinos go. It's a good time to head out there, given they offer $15 minimums. I stay away from anything above that.They also offer live poker here, but no one was playing, the last time I visited.Gaming, Slot Machines, Video Poker, Live Poker, Roulette, Craps, Baccarat, Video Progressives, Epic Buffet, Final Cut Steakhouse, Hollywood Stadium sports bar, free valet parking, on-site hotel and RV park located in Joliet, IL

Empress River Casino, Joliet: See 23 reviews, articles, and 0 photos of Empress River Casino, ranked No.10 on TripAdvisor among 10 attractions in Joliet.From Deuces Wild to Double Bonus, all your favorite video poker games are at Harrah’s Joliet. With 200 video poker games, this may be Chicago’s best video poker collection.World Series of Poker RoomPlay Texas Hold’em poker and Omaha in the WSOP Poker Room at Harrah’s Joliet, offering some of the best Chicago poker tournaments and live cash games around, plus our unique Poker League.When it comes to fun, everything is on the table! Play all your favorite games — get lucky on favorites like blackjack, craps, roulette, Three Card Poker, mini baccarat and Mississippi Stud Poker.Stayed two nights at the Hollywood Casino Hotel in Joliet, IL. Friendly front desk staff. Liked that we could walk across the parking lot to the casino. Not being connected to the casino the hotel was very quiet. Continental breakfast was plenty to keep you going until lunch.